NEA CEO Luke Goh to be Permanent Secretary for Law

SINGAPORE - The Ministry of Law will get a new permanent secretary on April 3, with National Environment Agency (NEA) chief executive Luke Goh appointed to the post.

Mr Goh, who has been in the NEA role since February 2021, will also be second permanent secretary for foreign affairs, said the Public Service Division on Friday.

The 47-year-old started his career as a central banker and regulator at the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

He then took on various appointments in the Ministry of Health, Public Service Division and Civil Service College, before joining the Ministry of Trade and Industry in 2016 as deputy secretary of trade.

Mr Loh Khum Yean, 58, the current permanent secretary for law, will relinquish his post and continue as permanent secretary for the Public Service Division.

Separately, Mr Stanley Loh, 51, will relinquish his appointment as permanent secretary for development in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He will continue as permanent secretary for sustainability and the environment, as well as second permanent secretary for special duties in the Prime Minister’s Office.

The Ministry of Sustainability and the Environment (MSE) said in a statement on Friday that Mr Wong Kang Jet will succeed Mr Goh as NEA chief executive.

Mr Wong, 43, is currently principal private secretary to Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat. Prior to that, he was in the Prime Minister’s Office strategy group from 2015 to 2019 as a director.

MSE expressed its gratitude towards Mr Goh for his contributions at NEA. It said that under his leadership, the statutory board helped in Singapore’s fight against the Covid-19 pandemic, such as through the swift roll-out of islandwide water testing for the virus and by keeping hawker centres open and safe.

Mr Goh also led efforts towards higher environmental standards, such as the expansion of Project Wolbachia to contain dengue outbreaks and the implementation of tray return in public eateries.